Who Buys Scooters and Electric Bikes?
After our first full year of operation, at Scooter Underground we decided to reflect on who are customers are – in short, who buys scooters?
Who did we target?
In our initial business plan, we thought that our demographic would be primarily younger buyers – the sub-25 year old college student type. We also surmised that we would have at least as many female buyers as males (which is very different from a motorcycle store).
Maybe a healthy dose of “greenies” would make up our customer base – wouldn't’t that be nice?
Who actually came and bought scooters and electric bikes?
Well, we were right that there are AT LEAST as many female buyers as male buyers. The age demographic is all over the map – we have probably sold at least as many scooters to people over 50 than those under 25.
There are even some groups of buyers that we did not see coming. People who may have lost their driver’s license realized that they were legally allowed to ride an electric bike or scooter. This alleviated many hardships of people who needed a mode of transportation to keep their job yet were not served by any other means of public transport.
Why buy a scooter or electric bike?
Most of our buyers are concerned about the environmental impact of their transportation and that’s great because we are too. We firmly believe that scooters and electric bikes are a big part of eliminating gridlock and pollution - - especially in our home market of Greater Victoria.
Scooter riding is a great way to relax and take in the scenery, sights, smells and enjoyment in an otherwise ugly commute to work in the morning. And the ride home is often enough to make the day’s turmoil flow out your tailpipe and be gone by the time you get home.
Electric bikes allow for an awesome blend of urban commuting machine and fitness device. Use the power assist for most of the commute to work and you arrive without breaking a sweat, ready to start your day. On the way home, challenge yourself by using less assist (except for that killer hill) and you get a great workout. Since the electric bikes are allowed in the bike lanes and on trails like the Galloping Goose, many customers opt for this mode of clean, green, transportation.
We have had numerous reports from both scooter and electric bike riders shaving time off their commute especially when you factor in the driving plus parking time.
Really, our buyers are anyone with a pulse who is looking for a better method of urban transportation. They want to have some fun, relieve parking hassles, do something good for the environment, and even make some new friends.
Saving money is also a great thing. The combined cost of gas, insurance, and parking makes the scooter or electric bike irresistible to many commuters.
We look forward to greatly expanding our base of riders in the years ahead - help us get the word out - this is a great way to travel!
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